For anyone who has DMd/Played in a rich homebrew city/world, what are some important aspects of this place that stood out for you? What made it feel alive? What made you fall in love with it?
I've been building something for over a year, and I think I have some good depth, but I'm nowhere near feeling it's ready for players. My goal is to have my players fall in love with this place and it's people. I've played a lot of expansive campaigns and I want to have something where a group can kick off their traveling boots and stay a while.
I have charming NPCs, landmarks, places of interest/shops, conflicts, and some story arcs to tie it all together... but I still have the nagging feeling that it's not enough, yet I also know with experience that no matter how much you plan things, your characters will likely do something you weren't expecting.
I'd love to hear from folks about things that stood out in their D&D environment that really struck a chord. I'm less interested in plot-points (unless they were integral in fleshing out your surroundings), but any memories about an interesting setting would be a much appreciated point of view! I'm not interested in copying anything, but just looking for inspiration on what to focus on. Many thanks in advance!